December 9, 2025 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

December 9, 2025 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 8:21 PM :: 182 Views

SOLD: Alexander & Baldwin to be Taken Private in $2.3 Billion Transaction

AG Launches Hawaii Crime Statistics Dashboard

Fireworks Firm Tied To Illegal Hawaiʻi Shipment OK'd To Sell Firecrackers

CB: … A Civil Beat investigation this year documented a web of connections between a mainland fireworks business and a 2022 shipment of $2.7 million worth of illegal pyrotechnics discovered inside a Matson container at Honolulu Harbor.

But that won’t stop Pacific Fireworks from selling firecrackers at outlets on Oʻahu, Maui and perhaps on the other islands leading up to the New Year, as it has for more than two decades.

The Honolulu Fire Department says it granted a retail sales license to the company after talking to the state Department of Law Enforcement, which operates an illegal fireworks task force in the aftermath of an explosion that killed six and seriously injured several others last New Year’s.

“HFD checked in with DLE specifically in regards to Pacific Fireworks … ,” HFD spokeswoman Jaimie Song wrote in an email. “DLE had no legal reason to support any denial of a retail permit.”…

… “And DLE is very aware of many illegal operations and provides details to prosecutors for them to pursue and eventually indict.”

Pacific Fireworks also has applied for a license on Kauaʻi. As of Monday, that application was still under review.

The company won’t be able to do business completely as usual, however. Although it can sell fireworks on Oʻahu, it can’t legally bring any into port. HFD denied Pacific Fireworks a license to import firecrackers to Hawaiʻi’s most populous island — or store them there — after discovering that in the past it did not get a required certificate showing it was fit to handle them.

A Pacific Fireworks employee named Dino Alexakos applied for the import license in October. In 2015, the Civil Beat investigation found that Alexakos pleaded no contest to selling firecrackers to someone without a permit after an undercover agent bought 50,000….

read … Fireworks Firm Tied To Illegal Hawaiʻi Shipment OK'd To Sell Firecrackers - Honolulu Civil Beat

AI permit process completion used by City

KHON: … “One of the biggest challenges that creates permitting delays is submission of building permit applications that are incomplete and of poor quality, requiring corrections that result in additional review cycles that extend the overall building permit process,” said Dawn Takeuchi Apuna, director of the Department of Planning and Permitting.

The launch of “CivCheck”– a new AI software tool — on Dec. 8 is supposed to help applicants with the permit completion process.

“The result is higher quality applications, shorter permitting times and better-informed applicants,” Apuna said.

According to the City and County, the software identifies which files and regulations are needed depending on the project and checks compliance with permit and code requirements. ….

(Humans go thru the motions. Robots check all the boxes.)

read … CivCheck AI software permit process completion used by City

Hawaii reaches deadliest year on roads since 2012

KHON: … Hawaiʻi has hit a tragic milestone. With a deadly crash in Kalihi on Monday, Dec. 8, Oʻahu has now recorded 78 traffic fatalities in 2025 — part of 122 deaths statewide, the highest number in more than a decade….

read … Hawaii reaches deadliest year on roads since 2012

Construction underway to complete West Oahu police substation

HNN: … The Waianae Police Substation first opened in 2016. However, its second floor was incomplete, leaving simple HPD operations, like juvenile bookings and walk-ins, to be done on the first floor.

Now, after the city awarded design and construction contracts, work to finish the building’s interior is taking shape. It’s costing about $1.5 million total, according to the mayor’s office….

The work focuses on the station’s second floor, allowing more HPD resources to be based out of Waianae. The mayor’s office said improvements will include four private and shared offices, an interrogation room and observation space, and a pantry.

Councilmember Andria Tupola said this will greatly benefit HPD’s special divisions like CID, homicide, and traffic, who often have to work out of their vehicles while out west….

ASD: Long-awaited improvements coming to Wa‘ianae police substation

read … Construction underway to complete West Oahu police substation

Nonprofit clears mortgage for family of fallen police officer

HNN: … The Tunnel to Towers Foundation, an organization dedicated to aiding first responders, paid an unspecified amount so that Officer Bill Sapolu’s family no longer had to make payments on their Waipahu home.

The mortgage gift from Tunnel to Towers is part of its “Season of Hope” campaign.

Sapolu died on August 8, 2023, weeks after a serious motorcycle crash….

KITV: Tunnel to Towers pays off mortgage for fallen HPD officer's family | Local | kitv.com

read … Nonprofit clears mortgage for family of fallen police officer

Court documents reveal alleged motive for slaying of Maui police officer

HNN: … Suzanne O died in the line of duty in August.

Prosecutors say phone calls the defendant made from jail explain why he killed her.

They say the temporary restraining order (TRO) police served the defendant, Clembert Kaneholani, just two days before the fatal shooting is “relevant to show the defendant’s motive for murdering a police officer, the intentionality of his actions, and the lack of mistake.”

They cite a recorded jail call on September 2nd where Kaneholani allegedly talked about the TRO and said, “Right after that, brah, that was it brah, I wanted to take lives already. I wanted to take lives – these cops, I wanted for - and I wanted them for take my life.” ….

read … Court documents reveal alleged motive for slaying of Maui police officer

Soft-on-Crime: Meth addicted slasher gets new trial

ASD: … Dela Cruz’s attorneys also argued that he should have been instead charged with manslaughter owing to his “extreme mental or emotional disturbance.” They claimed in their appeal that Lee, who was homeless, had repeatedly broken into Dela Cruz’s apartment against his wishes, frequently stealing food and clothing and once reportedly standing over Dela Cruz’s bed as he slept….

read … Man convicted of fatal Wahiawā stabbing to get retrial

Activists warn about how immigration crackdown impacts Hawaii

HNN: … Venezuelan immigrants who were working legally on Kauai until the country’s protected status was revoked waived their rights to attorneys and were deported, according to their employer’s attorney. The attorney said they wanted to get out of the federal detention center and go home….

At Monday’s hearing, attorneys who provide free immigration help said many don’t receive assistance because the process moves quickly while they are in custody.

“So a lot of times people are bounced from one place to the next, and they are unable to locate an attorney that can represent them,” said Pilar Kam of the UH Refugee and Immigration Law Clinic. “That is one of the main reasons why we try to get to that Federal Detention Center the moment we hear a person is in.” …

HPR: Hawaiʻi immigration detention hotline reports over 200 calls for assistance this year | Hawai'i Public Radio

CB: Most arrests for violating immigration in Hawaii unwarranted, attorneys say | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

HNN: Attorneys say immigrants arrested on Mainland are shipped to Hawaii detention center

read … Advocates, attorneys warn about how immigration crackdown impacts Hawaii

Man charged with assault after high school basketball game

KHON: … “They all think that their children are going to be stars, they’re going to be, they should be going to college, they should be first string, they should be playing more,” said Rich Miano, football analyst. “And this is a problem that exists throughout every level.”

“I think some parents envision their child getting a full ride to college, and they want to make sure that they have every opportunity to pursue that,” said Garrett.

Because of all this, sports officials are leaving the game. One group found that 50,000 sports officials across the country stopped working since 2019 because of these issues. And it’s no different here. Mamiya says he’s severely understaffed and unable to retain new people….

read … Man charged with assault after high school basketball game

AI porn on state websites?

ASD: … In many cases, the files were hosted via Granicus, a web platform that hosts records and files, and handles requests to access said files. In November, Granicus issued a statement assuring that they had not been hacked, and had subsequently patched the issue by blocking uploaded documents from being publicly searchable.

In Hawai‘i's case, the offending documents were posted through the state’s eHawaii.gov portal. Penny said third-party software provider Tyler Technologies handles user logins while the remainder of the eHawaii websites use Granicus systems.

While one illicit porn advertisement — promising “AI Porn tools and advanced photo alteration” that can “reveal or enhance images instantly” — was accessible on eHawaii.gov on Dec. 1, the page is no longer reachable. Searching for “AI porn” and “Hawaii.gov” at the same time still, at the time of publication, returned a link to that advertisement as the first result, but clicking the link only led to a “page not found” error message on the state website.

Penny said the advertisements contained clickable links which would, presumably, expose a user to malware and otherwise compromise a device’s security….

read … AI porn on state websites

Hawaiian Electric Sues Par Hawaiʻi Claiming Faulty Fuel Ruined Turbines

CB: … The lawsuit alleges tainted naphtha fuel caused “catastrophic damage” to a 60-megawatt power plant in Hāmākua that produces 25% to 30% of the electricity for the Big Island….

The lawsuit alleges Par produced naphtha that contained three times the amount of alkali metals such as sodium, potassium and lithium that is allowed under the power plant’s fuel purchasing agreement….

The faulty fuel caused extreme corrosion that ruined two gas turbines at the plant, according to the lawsuit….

The lawsuit alleges the faulty fuel was delivered to the Hāmākua plant sometime after July 2023, and workers at the plant noticed in December the turbines were not running properly. The allegedly tainted fuel was “effectively eating away at the turbines,” according to the suit.

The corrosion was discovered in February and March of 2024, and the Hāmākua plant was unable to produce power from late February until early June of last year. The plant operator was finally able to resume operations with a new turbine it purchased for $8.27 million, according to the filing.

The lawsuit lists another $1.7 million in costs associated with replacing the second turbine and lost electricity sales as well as another $4.4 million in lost capacity payments from Hawai’i Electric Light Co.

The Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative also uses naphtha for fuel and detected similar corrosion in its turbine, but the lawsuit does not detail that damage or costs….

IM: Hawaiian Electric Industries Sues PAR Refinery and IES | Ililani Media

read … Hawaiian Electric Sues Par Hawaiʻi Claiming Faulty Fuel Ruined Turbines - Honolulu Civil Beat

QUICK HITS: